# What was the worst retirement in sports history? **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [April 10, 2011, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840 "2011-04-10T04:50:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2011, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/41 "2011-04-10T23:39:09Z")
> [@Rysto](#): > > The OP’s title asked for “worst” retirements, which is what those replies are answering. The OP made it clear in the OP that he was asking, “What other atheletes had embarassing retirements and what made them so memorably bad?” Clemente, etc. don’t belong in that group any more than do Jordan, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Scud](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f08c70/32.png) [@Tom\_Scud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Scud)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/42 "2011-04-11T02:26:33Z")
Derek Bell, [“Operation Shutdown”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derek_Bell_(baseball)): > [@](#): > > In spring training 2002, while with the Pirates, Bell, who had hit .173 the previous season, did not feel that he needed to prove he was worthy of a starting job. > On March 18, Bell told reporters: > “Nobody told me I was in competition. If there is competition, somebody better let me know. If there is competition, they better eliminate me out of the race and go ahead and do what they’re going to do with me. I ain’t never hit in spring training and I never will. If it ain’t settled with me out there, then they can trade me. I ain’t going out there to hurt myself in spring training battling for a job. If it is [a competition], then I’m going into ‘Operation Shutdown.’ Tell them exactly what I said. I haven’t competed for a job since 1991.” > Bell jumped the team on March 29, was released on March 31, and never played in the majors again. The Pirates ended up paying him $4.5 million not to play for them. ---
**Author:** ![gonzomax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e8c25b/32.png) [@gonzomax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzomax)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/43 "2011-04-11T03:31:56Z")
There also was Joe Louis. he went on war bond raising tours during WW2. and raised a lot of money. He Heb toured the war camps and entertained and greeted the troops. Then after the war, the IRS nailed him for back taxes and he was broke. So he came back and ruined his legacy by taking bad beatings. He was a overweight old man fighting on and on. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/44 "2011-04-11T04:01:16Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > There was a gambling scandal on the horizon. I read that he left to escape the problem. :rolleyes: Sorry - this is the kind of crap sports fans make up to entertain themselves when they’re bored. It’s a stupid story. Jordan wasn’t a very good baseball player, but he didn’t retire to avoid a suspension. ---
**Author:** ![China\_Guy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/779978/32.png) [@China\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/China_Guy)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 4:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/45 "2011-04-11T04:52:05Z")
Jim Brown had his acting career. 😉 (I only know this because Tick Tick Tick was filmed in the podunk town I lived in and a different second grade class was on the school bus in one of the scenes.) ---
**Author:** ![Huerta88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/82dd89/32.png) [@Huerta88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Huerta88)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 5:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/46 "2011-04-11T05:01:59Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > How about Ricky Williams? He retired in 2004 to go smoke weed for a year, then returned in 2005. > > Actually, that may be the _best_ retirement in sports history! 😃 Ahh, I love the guy, despite my being the antithesis of a pothead. He was the second coming of Earl Campbell, an early hero for me. GD could he bounce. What’s his status now? After the Dolphins screwed the pooch he was looking very elsewhere/nowhere bound. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 12:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/47 "2011-04-11T12:40:18Z")
Barry Sanders is the one I’d go with. He was in the prime of his career, millions of dollars in contract earnings ahead of him, no particular non-football activity to go and do, he was just beaten down by the Lions culture of losing and bad management. Not necessarily bad for Barry personally, just a terrible statement about the Lions. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 1:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/48 "2011-04-11T13:02:37Z")
I don’t have the details in front of me, but the precise timing of Babe Ruth’s retirement is a bit embarrassing. By the time he gave it up, it was obvious that he couldn’t play big league ball any more and that there was no manager’s job waiting, so the writing was on the wall. The straw that broke the camel’s back, however, was that he wanted to do a personal appearance at a yacht party and couldn’t get the day off. I could be wrong; I dunno. ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/49 "2011-04-11T14:15:52Z")
> [@gonzomax](#): > > There also was Joe Louis. he went on war bond raising tours during WW2. and raised a lot of money. He Heb toured the war camps and entertained and greeted the troops. > Then after the war, the IRS nailed him for back taxes and he was broke. So he came back and ruined his legacy by taking bad beatings. He was a overweight old man fighting on and on. Being a destitue man and being desperate is not quiet a bad retirement story. IT’s a good ol’ tragedy. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/50 "2011-04-11T15:51:46Z")
Almost as odd as Michael Jordan’s “retirement” to play baseball was the retirement of Dallas Cowboys star lineman Ed “Too Tall” Jones," who left the NFL for two seasons to become a very bad professional boxer. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/51 "2011-04-11T16:59:45Z")
My only problem with the Sanders retirement was with the timing. He did it July which is after the draft and teams are just getting ready for training camps. Certainly the Lions were planning on making Bbarry the centerpiece and he retires suddenly and they are left with this huge hole. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/52 "2011-04-11T18:23:59Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > Guys who stayed too long would qualify: Willie Mays, Steve Carlton, Craig Biggio. I’d give Pete Rose the category championship here. He was clearly hanging on just to break Ty Cobb’s record for lifetime hits, and it’s questionable whether another manager would have kept him in the lineup long enough. But since he was managing the team he was playing on, he could stay on as an increasingly weak singles hitter in a position (1B) dominated by guys who hit 20-30 HRs a year. ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/53 "2011-04-11T18:57:12Z")
> [@Gangster\_Octopus](#): > > My only problem with the Sanders retirement was with the timing. He did it July which is after the draft and teams are just getting ready for training camps. Certainly the Lions were planning on making Bbarry the centerpiece and he retires suddenly and they are left with this huge hole. Not only that, he refused to tell the team what his plans were. If you’re going to retire, retire. If you’re going to play, play. What he did was completely ignore each and every inquiry by his team regarding his plans. He made Brett Favre look like a team player. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/54 "2011-04-11T19:06:00Z")
> [@BobLibDem](#): > > He made Brett Favre look like a team player. But he only did it for one season, right? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![BomTek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bomtek/32/21364_2.png) [@BomTek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BomTek)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/55 "2011-04-11T21:04:12Z")
> [@DxZero](#): > > Especially since he isn’t dead. :smack: Don’t know how I managed to read the post about him as being about a player who was killed, when I know better… Jeebus, that’s embarrassing. ---
**Author:** ![GargoyleWB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gargoylewb/32/199_2.png) [@GargoyleWB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GargoyleWB)\ **Post date:** [April 11, 2011, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/56 "2011-04-11T21:20:15Z")
Joe Montana as a contender…he was sent out as a “first line starter” figurehead until the very end, hobbling about in a flak jacket, and protected with touch-tackle treatment by officials and players. Most other quarterbacks could voluntarily sunset their careers in 2nd and 3rd string backup roles, but the league’s thirst for tickets and Joe’s premier ego turned his last couple of seasons into sideshows. ---
**Author:** ![Jim\_s\_Son](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e19adc/32.png) [@Jim\_s\_Son](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jim_s_Son)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/57 "2011-04-12T08:46:11Z")
You kind of forget about it but The Gerbil, Don Zimmer, retired as coach of the Colorado Rockies in the 5th inning of a game in 1995. People thought it was a joke. Then the next year out of the blue he got a job offer as Yankee coach from Joe Torre, whom he barely knew, cashed a lot of checks, got to write two books, and is still around. [http://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/08/sports/sports-people-baseball-zimmer-walks-off-field-into-retirement.html](http://www.nytimes.com/1995/06/08/sports/sports-people-baseball-zimmer-walks-off-field-into-retirement.html) ---
**Author:** ![Capitaine\_Zombie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@Capitaine\_Zombie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capitaine_Zombie)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 8:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/58 "2011-04-12T08:57:04Z")
I think Zidane ending his stint with the French national football team with his headbutt (would be a good runner). Thus making sure that his team loses in the finals and that he gets eternally remembered for this. I’m not sure if he didnt keep on playing in club after that (so that would be retirement from national team). ---
**Author:** ![DxZero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@DxZero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DxZero)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/59 "2011-04-12T13:49:46Z")
> [@Capitaine\_Zombie](#): > > I think Zidane ending his stint with the French national football team with his headbutt (would be a good runner). Thus making sure that his team loses in the finals and that he gets eternally remembered for this. I’m not sure if he didnt keep on playing in club after that (so that would be retirement from national team). He had, in fact, retired from Real Madrid prior to the World Cup. So that was his last match as a pro. Memorable way to go out. ---
**Author:** ![Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Freddy\_the\_Pig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freddy_the_Pig)\ **Post date:** [April 12, 2011, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840/60 "2011-04-12T22:07:59Z")
Don’t forget Ryne Sandberg’s first retirement from the Cubs in June 1994. He quit in mid-season to “spend more time with his family”, while his wife stood by, beaming, at the press conference in a gaudy sundress. Seven days later he got divorced. (That’s right, _days_, not months or years.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-was-the-worst-retirement-in-sports-history/577840.md?page=4)